This Instant Pot chicken chili is full of bold TexMex flavor, and fall-apart tender chicken. A hearty meal for a cold day, it's simple to prepare and cooks up quickly thanks to the pressure cooker!
There are so many ways to enjoy chili - from classic beef chili to white chicken chili, spicy chickpea chili, and this Instant Pot chicken chili!
Comforting, warm, and so flavorful, this Instant Pot chicken chili is sure to be a new favorite in your meal prep rotation. Not only is it easy to prepare, but it is ideal for meal prep as it can be stored in the fridge or freezer.
The whole family will enjoy this classic recipe that is gluten-free, clean-eating friendly, and dairy-free (omit the optional cheese topping). Serve it with cilantro, cheese, and crispy tortilla chips for an easy weeknight meal.
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Reasons you'll love this recipe
- the spices and garlic add so much depth of flavor, with a kick of heat from the cayenne
- it's so easy to prepare, the Instant Pot does all the work!
- it stores well in the fridge or freezer, and tastes even better after reheating
Recipe Video
Watch the video below to see how to cook this Instant Pot chicken chili! You can find more of my recipe videos on my YouTube channel and Facebook page.
Ingredient notes
- chicken - boneless skinless chicken breast are perfect in this recipe. They cook until fall-apart tender, and shred easily. You may swap for boneless skinless chicken thighs (use the same cook time).
- tomato sauce - is a pureed tomato sauce, not to be confused with ketchup! It can sometimes be called 'passatta'
- onion - while we've used red onion in these photos, you can also swap for brown onion (also known as yellow onion) if you prefer
- chili powder - is a paprika-based spice blend, not to be cofused with pure powdered chilies. The chili powder we used was mild.
- kidney beans - we find that kidney beans work perfectly in this recipe, but you could swap for black beans, white kidney beans, and even chickpeas
- stock - use either chicken, or vegetable stock for this recipe
Step by step directions
Sauté onions & garlic
Select the 'sauté' function of your Instant Pot. Into the stainless steel insert, add olive oil and onions. Cook for 5 or so minutes, until onions are soft and translucent, then make a space and add the garlic; cook for 1 minute.
Sauté spices
Add the spices (chili powder, cumin, coriander, salt, and cayenne). Toss to coat, and cook for an additional minute, stirring frequently so the spices don't burn.
TIP- it's a good idea to deglaze the bottom of your Instant Pot after sautéing to avoid triggering the burn warning.
Add Remaining Ingredients
After a minute, add the stock and scrape the bottom of the pan to ensure nothing is stuck. Then add (in the following order) corn, kidney beans, chicken breasts, diced tomatoes and tomato sauce. Do not stir.
Cook
Place the lid on the Instant Pot and set the steam release handle to the 'sealing' position. Pressure cook for 5 minutes. When the Instant Pot completes its cooking cycle, allow it to naturally release for 10 minutes (just let the pot sit without touching it). After 10 minutes, carefully transfer the steam release handle to the 'venting' position to release any remaining pressure.
Shred chicken
Use tongs to carefully transfer chicken breasts to a clean bowl. Use two forks or an electric hand mixer to shred the chicken, then return to the chili and stir.
TIP- shred your chicken in seconds with an electric hand mixer!
Serve
Enjoy chili topped with shredded cheese, avocado, and sour cream.
FAQ
No. This button defaults to high pressure for 30 minutes (1). This is unnecessarily long for this recipe and you risk overcooking your chili, so instead, we are using manual/high pressure for 5 minutes.
Yes, if your frozen chicken breasts are separated, you can still cook them in this recipe. Increase the cook time to 10 minutes with a 10 minute natural pressure release. If your breasts are stuck together, I recommend thawing partially and prying apart before adding to the chili.
This recipe was tested in both a 6 quart Instant Pot and an 8 quart Instant Pot.
As written, it is very mildly spicy. You can add spice by increasing the cayenne, or by adding jalapeño peppers!
Variations
Here are some 'secret ingredients' you can add to improve the flavor (note that I would try one of them, not all!)
- 1 tablespoon cocoa powder - adds a deeper flavor to the spices; tastes best after sitting 1 day
- 1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar - add after cooking through
- 1 teaspoon espresso powder- similar effect to cocoa powder; adds depth to the spices
Storage + reheating
Cool chili, then add to your favorite storage container (I like plastic freezer jars).
- fridge - store in the fridge for up to 4 days
- freezer- freeze for up to 6 months
- reheat - heat individual portions in the microwave until steaming hot; heat larger portions in a pot over medium heat for 15-20 minutes, or until steaming hot.
Did you make this? Tag me on social @sweetpeasandsaffron and be sure to leave a comment and rate the recipe!
Instant Pot Chicken Chili
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 onion diced
- 6 cloves garlic minced
- 1.5 tablespoons chili powder note 1
- 1.5 teaspoons ground cumin
- 1 teaspoon ground coriander
- 1 teaspoon salt
- ¼ teaspoon cayenne
- 1 cup stock
- 12 oz can corn drained
- 19 oz can kidney beans drained & rinsed
- 15 oz can of diced tomatoes including juices
- 15 oz tomato sauce note 2
- 2 chicken breasts roughly 1 lb; see note 3
Instructions
- Sauté onions & garlic - Select the 'sauté' function of your Instant Pot. Into the stainless steel insert, add olive oil and onions. Cook for 5 or so minutes, until onions are soft and translucent, then make a space and add the garlic; cook for 1 minute.
- Sauté spices - Add the spices (chili powder, cumin, coriander, salt and cayenne; see note 4). Toss to coat, and cook for an additional minute, stirring frequently so the spices don't burn.
- Add remaining ingredients - After a minute, add the stock and scrape the bottom of the pan to ensure nothing is stuck. Then add (in the following order) corn, kidney beans, chicken breasts, diced tomatoes and tomato sauce. Do not stir.
- Cook - Place the lid on the Instant Pot and set the steam release handle to the 'sealing' position. Pressure cook for 5 minutes.When the Instant Pot completes its cooking cycle, allow it to naturally release for 10 minutes (just let the pot sit without touching it). After 10 minutes, carefully transfer the steam release handle to the 'venting' position to release any remaining pressure.
- Shred chicken - Use tongs to carefully transfer chicken breasts to a clean bowl. Use two forks or an electric hand mixer to shred the chicken, then return to the chili and stir.
- Serve - Enjoy chili topped with shredded cheese, avocado and sour cream.
Tips:
- use a paprika-based chili powder blend for this recipe; find it in the spices aisle of your grocery store or make a homemade version using the recipe linked in the blog post
- tomato sauce refers to a puréed tomato mixture; sometimes it’s called passata. Do not confuse with ketchup
- chicken breasts may be swapped for boneless, skinless chicken thighs with the same cook time
- it’s smart to have all the spices measured out in a small bowl before you begin cooking so that they don’t burn while you are measuring out the other spices.
- tomato products are notorious for causing a burn warning; adding them last keeps them away from the bottom of pot.
- note that the chili will be ‘soupy’ upon removal of the lid, but as it cools, it thickens up nicely.
- fridge- store in the fridge for up to 4 days
- freezer- freeze for up to 6 months
Video
Nutrition Information
© Sweet Peas & Saffron - Content and photographs are copyright protected. Sharing of this recipe is both encouraged and appreciated. Copying and/or pasting full recipes to any social media is strictly prohibited.
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Denise Bustard is the creator of Sweet Peas and Saffron, a meal prep-focussed food blog. With a PhD in biochemistry, Denise takes a scientific approach to perfecting her recipes. You can find Denise's work featured on Huffington Post, MSN, Self and more.
Tyna Goodrich says
Very easy and tasty.
Ally says
This was the first instant pot recipe I tried and it got me hooked on the instant pot!! It is super simple, quick, and turns out delicious every time!
I have tried this recipe with shredded chicken and turkey leftovers (haven’t tried it with raw protein) and it turned out great! Here’s my tip for making this meal with pre-cooked meats: cook all of the ingredients except for your pre-cooked protein for 5 minutes and depressurize per instructions. I then add my cooked meat, stir, and set my IP to manual at low pressure for 0 minutes. If I do it this way, my chicken or turkey doesn’t get dry. If I add my cooked meat where the recipe says add raw meat, my protein ends up tough and dry (which makes sense lol).
Jasmine @ Sweet Peas & Saffron says
Hi Ally, congrats on learning how to use your Instant Pot! So exciting. Really glad to hear that this recipe turned out well for you, thanks for taking the time to come back to leave a rating and review plus your tips on cooking with pre-cooked meat, so helpful.
Jocelyn Boyd says
Can the chicken breast be cooked in the instant pot with the other ingredients?
Jasmine @ Sweet Peas & Saffron says
Hi Jocelyn, yes - the chicken breast is cooked in the Instant Pot with the other ingredients - see step 3. 🙂 I hope this helps! Enjoy, and let us know how the recipe turns out once you have a chance to try it!